There are two ways to read “Investigating Causal Effects of Arts Education Experiences,” which reports on a first-of-its-kind arts education experiment from Rice University's Kinder Institute for Urban Research.
The first is with a measure of relief. The authors, Daniel H. Bowen of Texas A&M, and the University of Missouri's Brian Kisida, claim measurable academic, social, and emotional outcomes associated with arts education for elementary and middle school students. Bravo!
The second is with a touch of vexation, perhaps sadness, or even resignation. Do we really need a randomized control trial study to justify the arts as an essential part of a well-rounded education? If a rock-bottom, basic function of K–8 schooling is to expose children to the broadest range of human knowledge, discovery, and expression (that is the function, right?), then a permission slip is hardly needed to include the arts.
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